India loves Hitler

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“Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed….Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.”
― Elie Wiesel, Night

India is in love with Hitler. However the immense majority of it’s population doesn’t know why and they do not care at all beyond their own personal and professional worries.

The most famous opinion of Hitler on India was written in his book “Mein Kampf” where he says that Indians are not capable of self rule and he would rather see them under British rule than anyone else. Then, why India loves Hitler? Some lobby/corporation interest?

Celebrate Cupid’s day 14th. February 2014. Indian national newspaper DNA prints a photo of Hitler and an excessive in length article above the “Valentine’s day romantic movies list”. Coincidence? When American news website “The Daily Beast”, and the British “Daily Mail” comes out with a story related to WWII or Hitler, after few days always it comes printed in India.

Photo taken at a Railway platform library. If you travel to India you will find even in the smallest book store a biography of Hitler and the “Mein Kampf” in English or in a local language edition. This apply also to book stalls at airports.

The majority of the Indian population do not know who Hitler was (and nothing at all about WWII). The minority (millions, because India have a huge population) who have heard his name do not know “exactly” what he did (and they are not interested to find out), so they do not see a problem or find any objection on why books or articles about him or WWII shouldn’t be highlighted with a disproportionately length, talking about unnecessary topics/themes and in general in such excessive manner as if they hold a huge interest to the Indian readers or as important/relevant as the standard (sponsored paid) space for celebrity gossips.

Apart from roadside hawkers, kiosks at railway platforms, small and large chain of bookshops across the country stock Hitler’s biography and his Mein Kampf, as do online stores.

The “Mein Kampf” (on the left) and a biography of Hitler (center) among the ones of Bill Gates, Lincoln, Obama… He is not viewed as the personification of evil, but as a management guru, akin to Machiavelli or Sun Tzu, and an object of wonder by people craving order amid the chaos of India. (Photo taken at a Bus Station).

Feminazis! Sometimes is Hitler’s love for chocolate, other times his love for dogs, his secret lovers, his oratorical style… (Times Of India newspaper)

“Natural & Chic”? The swastika gives a misconception of what the article is about. It’s about a biography book of Hanns Alexander; German born Jew and British officer who arrested Rudolf Hoss (the commandant of Auschwitz). Rather than give a relevant image to the Nazi symbol, wouldn’t be better the front cover image of the book?

“The righteous dude” got the bigger pic. size and attention on the right side next to Allen’s news and about the demise of actor Maximiliam Schell smaller photo size on top left. They found most relevant to “spotlight”/publicize a young and grooming photo of Hitler, even do the topic is about mosquitoes as weapons in WWII. (Hindustan Times newspaper. 03-February-2014)

After few days, again same National newspaper “Hisdustan Times” persists in publishing on 17-February-2014 the same news about the mosquitoes but with different literature! (Note:This photo has been added to the article of TOI blog after its first publication on 14th Feb. It can be add more newspaper cuttings from days to come to show the paranoia and fixation of Hitler’s figure, WWII, Nazism that exist in India. The point is that the more care-free such evocations and circulations of him, his Mein Kampf and Nazism appear, the stronger the potential for such ideology remains.)

There’s no antisemitism intended in India. Indians just think Hitler was a strong guy, and in Indian popular culture it’s very common to nickname “Hitler” or “Nazi” to a person who has a horrible temper or she/he is too bossy. You can spot swastikas anywhere in India, they’re a Hindu symbol of purity and holiness, but most of the time Indians do not know that the Nazis reversed the traditional Indian swastika when they made it their symbol, and when Indians see it printed on the media they think “its the original” (same goes with screen-shots of Ben Kingsley’s character from the film “Gandhi” who is popularly mistaken for the real one being the actor’s photo printed in bios of the mahatma and even framed on walls) and later in their ignorance at the time of drawing the original they do it wrongly (the Nazi) without realizing in which way it’s the correct one.

Really “they” believe the Indian readers would be interested to think to travel in time to kill Hitler? What’s the debate for? (DNA-newspaper. Date: 29-01-2014)

Corporate people are putting so much interest and efforts in India to make the figure of Hitler as an example of leadership/oratorical skills that is becoming very common his profile picture and name so much that people argue: “What’s wrong in that? Something good he may have done to get so much publicity!”. So, as a result, Indians buy thousands of copies of “Mein Kampf” every month! Even it is being widely read by India’s management schools as a successful business model to young students.

Hitler biography for Indian children along with Jesus Christ, Gandhi, Tagore, Arjuna, Nehru… “Times of India” published a poll of young students in elite institutions across India revealing 17% favored Adolf Hitler as the kind of leader India ought to have. Ahead of him, paradoxically, Gandhi the choice of 23% and the Prime Minister, 20%. Does the placement of Hitler, above Abraham Lincoln and Nelson Mandela mean anything?

At the inauguration of the latest “International Film Festival of India” a Minister called “Hitler” to a politician from the opposite party.

From books to wall hanging. Hitler’s profile printed on a poster is being put on sell along with Home Furnishing.

Bookstore at Indian International Airport in New Delhi. At the front side, well display and visible to passengers a new book about WWII.The phenomenon of Hitler’s growing popularity in India is a paradox because of the absence of antisemitism in the country. And this makes the result that there are many people who have fallen into the trap of the Holocaust deniers and have started doubting it.

In India, Jews happen to be the smallest religious minority and the Muslims, the biggest. Jewish history, culture and religion should be much more promoted, because it’s hardly known, and if this does not happen, the society becomes intolerant towards minorities which has grave consequences not just for the minorities but also for the majority Hindu community because at the end ignorance gives birth to stereotypes and misconceptions, and hatred thrives on falsehood.

“Times of India” (Sunday Edition) on the left and “Hindustan Times” on the right published on their front page the “so important & relevant” news to their Indians readers that Hitler might have married a Jewish woman.

So loved as Archie? DNA National Newspaper published (10-04-14) same news about Hitler and Eva.

On the front page of “Hindustan Times” (12-03-2014) the news that political candidate Rahul Gandhi compares opposition leader Modi to Adolf Hitler.

“Hindustan Times” on 01-03-14. Hitler’s copies of his book sells so good that it would be so sweet of you to read it while enjoying dark chocolate (it boost heart health, didn’t you know it?)

It is VERY natural for an Indian newspaper of NATIONAL circulation to publish SUCH news related indirectly to Hitler because India is so fascinated to his figure that is almost impossible to avoid it, and why should they avoid to show off to the public the person who really they are madly in love?

25-04-2014 “DNA National Newspaper”. They found so important the above news about “Doctor Death” (Aribert Heim) that for their Indian readers they gave it so much prominent space. The article starts saying: “The thing is, though, besides those who made it into your text books -the Hitlers, Goerings and Himmlers- many escaped unscathed, free to live out the rest of their days pretending to be mild-mannered expats who’d moved to Argentina simply because they preferred empanadas and polo to bratwurst and car manufacturing.” The article is signed by US based news http://www.vice.com/en_us

On 26-04-2014 “DNA National Newspaper” publish an article by Moscow-based writer,Leonid Bershidsky; author of three novels, two nonfiction books and founding editor of Russia’s top business daily, Vedomosti, a joint project of Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal, and the first publisher of the Russian edition of Forbes.In his article he urges the Spaniards to do not change the village name “Matajudios” (which translates as “Kill Jews”) because it can be used as a lure to attract tourism.Below the article it is mentioned that it is shared by courtesy of http://www.bloombergview.com/contributors/leonid-bershidsky

On the left an exaggerated news coverage on the first page of the international affairs section of TIMES OF INDIA (26-04-2014) The news is about the YouTube video posted on internet (“That Jew Died for You”) showing Jesus being sent to the gas chambers.

Another exaggerated news coverage with the word “Nazi” prominent and visible. It is about the new novel of Francine Prose titled “Lovers at the Chameleon Club” based on the story of an elite French athlete who turns Gestapo informant. The article is shared from a blog of www.thedailybeast.com

About the Author

Alfredo de Braganza is an award-winning independent filmmaker & chocolate-coated sufganiyah lover from Spain currently living in India. His documentary "Smoking Babas" was selected for the Madrid International Film Festival and his film "Maayan The Fisherman" for Best Narrative Film at the Florida International Film Festival. He is the first Spanish person to make a feature film in India, on celluloid and native language. His documentary "Boxing Babylon" won Best Documentary Awards at the 2013-Norway Film Festival and New Delhi International Sports Film Festival. He can be contacted at: alfredodebraganza@gmail.com
www.alfredodebraganza.com